GuidedResearchProcess

Understand your research assignment

Skills: Understanding the research context
Tools
- Research Project Calculator The calculator customizes the steps for your project according to your research task.
- Research Rubric

Brainstorm possible topics

Choose a topic

Skill: Defining a research topic
Skill: Web, map, or diagram a main topic with sub-topics.
Technology Tools
- Gliggy.com Helps create flowcharts and diagrams to focus topic and research.
  Bubbl.usA tool for easily creating and saving mind maps.

Pre-search - gather background information on topic

Skill: Search strategies for Library Catalog, free Internet, & databases
Skill: Understand Boolean searching, subject headings, phrase searching ...
Skill: Skim/read all sources to provide background information
- Understand what is a reference resource, what types of reference sources there are and why reference sources are a good place to start.
Skill: Generate questions about topic.

Test topic

Skills: Narrow or broaden your topic
- Assess whether topic matches assignment.
- Broaden or narrow your topic depending on whether you have enough or too much information
  - create lesson Check in reference source print/online

Start a list of keywords

Skill: Identify key concepts
Skill: Identifysynonyms
Lesson: Using Keywords in the Research Process
Technology Tools
- Instagrok.com: A search engine that displays results as interactive concept maps
- elon's suggestion

Keep track of sources

Skill: Create a bibliography
Skill: Notetaking
Technology Tools
- NoodleToolsIntegrated tools for note-taking, outlining, citation, document archiving/annotation, and collaborative research and writing.
  BibMefully automatic bibliography maker
  Son of Citation MachineProvides an interactive tool to help create citations for research papers.
- ZoteroAn easy-to-use research tool that helps you gather, organize, and analyze sources and then share the results of your research.

Develop a research question

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